What's behind the sadness?

Mental health issues are on the rise for young people, especially girls, according to data published in 2021 by the CDC in its Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data Summary and Trends Report: 2011–2021. A key finding in this study reveals that 30% of girls surveyed reported having seriously considered attempting suicide. This rate was twice as high as the rate among boys and represented a nearly 60% increase in girls when compared to a similar study from a decade prior.

According to pediatric nurse practitioner Dr. Jessica Peck, this information is in line with her clinical experience: Rates of anxiety, depression, body dysmorphia, disordered eating, and self-harm have increased significantly among adolescent girls in recent years.

Peck has practiced nursing for over 20 years. She hosts an hour-long show on American Family Radio, which is also on the podcast lineup. On The Dr. Nurse Mama Show, she provides biblical and holistic health perspectives to help families work through issues today’s teens face.

In an interview with The Stand, Peck discussed the unique mental health challenges girls are facing today and offered advice to parents on how to nuture their daughters’ well-being.

Body dysmorphia and media

Peck has witnessed escalating anxiety and depression among her female patients and explained how girls’ struggles are like those of boys, but they manifest themselves a little differently in females. 

“We know now from research, and we can say with confidence, that social media is generally extremely detrimental to the mental health of younger girls in particular,” she explained. “We see a clear correlation between screen time and social media use and anxiety and depression, and especially body dysmorphic disorders.”

Social media presents a “prism of perfection and filtered pictures,” leading to poor body image and disordered eating patterns, Peck said.

A study published by BMC Women’s Health in June 2022 explored how sexualized images of women found on social media can influence a girl’s body image. Participants in the study said viewing such images led to negative appearance comparisons, exacerbating insecurity about their appearance and encouraging efforts to change their looks to measure up. This stemmed from a desire to attain an “ideal” appearance and for validation through “likes” and positive comments online. While aware that these images are often edited or staged, girls who participated in this study said they still made unfavorable comparisons between themselves and the subjects of the images.

Peck warned that this struggle with body insecurity isn’t just a result of social media. It can be inadvertently taught.

“This behavior is often learned from mothers who express distaste for their own looks,” she said. “Mothers must be aware of how they’re looking at their own image. Because so much of that is caught.” 

“Thankfully,” she continued, “Gen Z [those born from 1996-2010] seems to reject this a little bit through platforms like BeReal that emphasize authenticity over appearance.” Still, she advises monitoring social media for sources of body negativity.

“If there’s somebody who perpetually makes your daughter feel bad about herself, then she needs to stop following that person [online],” Peck said.

Self-harm

“The other thing that I’m seeing a lot in boys and girls, but mostly in girls, is self-harming behavior.”

However, according to Peck, self-harm is not solely driven by social media influence. She described one patient who grew up in a Christian home with a very supportive family and no social media exposure. However, she still experienced trauma and began harming herself.

“She thought she was the only one struggling with self-harm,” explained Peck. “And many parents think if their kids aren’t exposed to it, that kind of thing is not going to happen. But that’s just not true.”

Peck asserted that while social media clearly enables self-harm behavior, parents cannot assume that limiting technology prevents underlying mental health issues.

Social disconnection 

Loneliness and anxiety about in-person interactions is another growing phenomenon, Peck observed.

“Especially in young women,” she said, “the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to dramatic social disconnection.

“They are digitally connected as a generation,” she continued, “but they are socially disconnected, and they have a lot of anxiety about in-person interactions. So mental health professionals are looking from a diagnostic lens at a sixth classification of separation anxiety, where these girls don’t want to leave home, or they don’t want to leave their parents or their family or go anywhere. They prefer digital interactions to in-person interactions. This is something that’s really concerning.”

Parental involvement

In this digital age, parents tend to be distracted from their children, Peck noted: “We’re just as guilty of unhealthy phone behaviors and not paying attention to our kids. We need to give them time and attention and intentionally invest in them.”

Twenty seconds of mutual eye contact secretes oxytocin and biochemical reactions that reinforce parent-child bonds, Peck explained. But she warned that this effect is sabotaged by “phubbing,” or phone snubbing kids in favor of devices.

“Staying engaged with children can powerfully alleviate isolation and anxiety,” she said.

Given most girls’ increasing reluctance to confide in parents, Peck urged intentional relationship-building between parents and daughters. 

“Don’t give up if that first effort doesn’t work,” she said. “You’ve got to work overtime and recognize that planting and harvesting don’t happen in the same seasons. Be physically present in their lives. Be emotionally present in their lives. Listen with your face toward theirs.”

Image of God

“Most vitally,” said Peck, “Christian parents must instill in their children that they are created in the image of God. While the world gives you messages like you’re undesirable, and you’re unwelcome, God gives you the message that you are chosen, you are called, you are redeemed, you are the apple of God’s eye, you are a masterpiece.”

Peck shared how one girl, coping with body image issues, posted Bible verses related to identity around her mirror for regular reminders.

“Scriptural truths can counteract worldly lies,” she declared. But Peck was also straightforward about discerning a child’s need for therapeutic help.

Time for help

“You should seek therapeutic help for your daughter if her struggles are impacting your daily quality of life,” she explained. “If you are making concessions or alterations in your family routines or schedule, if it’s affecting your child’s ability to go to school and to play and to live herlife, [then] those are all signs that [her struggles] need to be addressed.”

Rather than waiting for crises, Peck urged parents to consult trusted health care providers at the earliest signs of sustained disruption.

“Just as you would quickly examine an earache, so too should you examine emerging mental health issues,” she warned. “Catching problems early greatly aids treatment. But it requires being present and engaged in their daily lives.”

Editor’s note: Read “The battle for boys’ minds” in the 4/24 issue of The Stand.